Plot

The crew is going to break into the depository to free Crichton. Crichton is being tortured for wormhole technology. Nothing is going like planned with those mercenaries but unexpected arrival of Talyn helps them to break free. They get rid of Scorpius but their losses are too big, among which Crichton's sanity.

After a rough discussion among mercenaries and the crew on Moya, they finally agree and descend. But nothing is going like planned by Stark: the Vocarian's smell is much worse than his female's one, the Seyang cannot breath fire and Zenetan Pirates use the Flax against Moya. However the unexpected appearance of Talyn helps them to finally get themselves and Crichton out of there. Only that Crichton hardly wanted it any more, almost subdued by the neural clone of Scorpius who is buried under depository ruins. They are rich now but Rork and Teurac sacrificed themselves, Moya is gravely injured and Crichton is hardly controlling himself, asking D'Argo to kill him, so Rygel is the only one happy aboard.—Victoria Alaya

The crew is going to break into the Depository to free Crichton, who is being tortured for wormhole technology. Nothing is going as planned with the mercenaries, but the unexpected arrival of Talyn helps them to break free. They get rid of Scorpius, but their losses are too big, among which is Crichton's sanity.

Left with no money and some extremely angry mercenaries on a badly burned Moya, the crew must deal with the fact that Crichton has given himself up to Scorpius to save Jothee. But Aeryn is not prepared for defeat. She convinces the others that the plan is still the same. Instead of rescuing Jothee, they're going to rescue Crichton. When the mercenaries question what they are going to be paid with, Aeryn reminds them that the Depository holds more riches than any of them could ever have dreamed.

In the Depository, Scorpius and Natira examine the captured Crichton. Months earlier, Scorpius had installed a neural chip in Crichton's brain; the chip contained a mental clone of Scorpius. The clone's task was to locate the information on wormhole technology that an alien race called the Ancients had locked away in Crichton's unconscious mind. Scorpius now dons a device that allows him to communicate with his mental clone: has the clone accomplished its task? Yes, says the clone; the wormhole information has been downloaded to the neural chip, and the chip can now be surgically removed.

But Scorpius is put on alert when Rorf is caught sneaking around the Depository perimeter. Scorpius lets Natira torture and interrogate Rorf, who gives up the information that Moya's crew plans to attack and destroy the Depository's generator, using the resulting dark as their cover. D'Argo, Aeryn, and Bekhesh begin the assault, clearing the way for Zhaan, Stark, and Teurac to reach the generator so Teurac can breathe a fireball and destroy it. However, Scorpius and several guards are waiting at the generator. Teurac nonetheless completes his objective by refusing to be taken alive; he blasts himself, causing a huge explosion that takes out the generator.

Crichton persuades Natira that Scorpius, once he's gained his objective, will never let her remain alive; Natira releases Crichton in exchange for safe passage to Moya with him. But the Scorpius mental clone in Crichton's head is clamoring for Crichton to give up the escape attempt and return to Scorpius. Even if Aeryn and the others can fight their way out of the Depository, can Crichton resist the neural chip's takeover of his mind?